Combined toilet and bidet



I. SALVONI r! 7, mm

COMBINED TOILET AND BIDET Original Filed Feb. 11, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR.

AORNEY.

i I. SALVONI April 7, 1936.

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COMBINED TOILET AND BIDET Original Filed Feb. 11, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 v INVENTOR. l apolito Salmrrzz' ATTORNEY.

Patented Apr. 7, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE COMBINED TOILET AND BIDET New York, N. Y.

Application February 11, 1935, Serial No. 6,062 Renewed January 31, 1936 14 Claims.

This invention relates to sanitary appliances and more particularly refers to improvements in toilets and bidet attachments therefor.

Under modern conditions where bathrooms in large numbers are provided 'in hotels, apartments, and private residences, the space reserved for each bathroom must perforce be rather limited if prohibitive building and rental costs are to be avoided. As a consequence the equipment of an American bathroom generally comprises only a bathtub, toilet and washstand, whereas in Europe, where space is less valuable and bathrooms are less numerous in proportion to the number of rooms in a residential building or hotel, a bidet is also provided in addition to the above mentioned fixtures. This has served to popularize the use of bidets in Europe, whereas the use of such an appliance in the United States and Canada still represents the exception rather than the rule.

Attempts have heretofore been made towards combining a bidet attachment with an ordinary water closet, in order to make it possible to add this convenience to the American bathroom without the necessity of using additional space; but such arrangements as have come to my notice, however, for one reason or other have proved utterly impractical and have, therefore, failed to come into general use.

The primary object of this invention is to provide a novel and improved bidet adapted to be easily applied in connection with an ordinary water closet, said bidet being unobtrusive and at the same time being as large and serviceable as its normal use requires.

Another object is to provide, in combination with an ordinary water closet, a seat and a bidet, each usable independently of the other and each designed so as to satisfactorily respond to the exigencies of their normal use.

A further object of the invention is to; 'provide, in connection with a water closet of standard design, a bracket attachment secured in position by the hinge bolts ordinarily provided for supporting the toilet seat, said bracket attachment being adapted to hingedly support either a bidet or a toilet-seat at the side of the toilet bowl.

Other objects and advantages of the present "invention will more fully appear as the descripbowl, equipped with my improved bidet, hingedly mounted at the rear of the bowl; I

Fig. 2 is a front view in elevation thereof;

Fig. 3 is a plan view thereof;

Fig. 4 is a detail view in perspective of a bracket which may be used in connection with the arrangement of Figs. 1, 2, 3;

Fig. 5 is a vertical longitudinal section in an enlarged scale through line 5-5 of Fig; 3;

Fig. 6 is a side view in elevation of a toilet bowl illustrating an alternative way of applying my invention;

Fig. 7 is a front View in elevation thereof;

Fig. 8 is a view in perspective illustrating another possible embodiment of my invention;

Fig. 9 is a front view in elevation of still another arrangement, embodying my invention in a different form; and

Fig. 10 is a vertical longitudinal section through the top of a toilet bowl, embodying my invention in a still different form.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 5, l0 designates a toilet bowl of ordinary design, provided with a rear extension ii, which is equipped as usual with hinge bolts l2, l3, which are ordinarily employed for hingedly supporting the seat.

in the arrangement shown, the hinge bolts are utilized instead for pivotally attaching thereto a bidet M, which can be lowered in position on top of the bowl, as shown in full lines in Figs. 1, 2, 3, or which can be raised to the position shown in dotted lines at M in Fig. 1.

In said figures and also more particularly in Fig. 5 it will be observed that the bidet rests directly over the top l5 of the bowl, and is pfferably wider and longer than thebowl itself, having a front nose portion l6 extending beyond the front part of the bowl.

v The bidet thus results, formed as a relatively shallow pan, with a deeper central portion ll extending a certain distance within the bowl. Said deeper portion preferably has a curved or slanting outline and is provided with an outlet is, controlled by a stopper I 9.

At the rear the bidet is provided with hinge extensions 20, 2|, which are pivotally mounted on cross member 22, supported by hinge bolts By virtue of this arrangement the bidet can be raised or lowered. in position, as is usually done in connection with a seat of ordinary design. The bidet is preferably provided with a cover or lid 23, which is also hinged on cross member 22, and which serves to entirely conceal the bidet when closed, said cover or lid being 2 preferably provided with means, such as a catch spring 24, for detachably engaging the underlying bidet.

In Fig. 1, the bidet is shown lowered in position ready for use while the cover or lid 23 is left in its raised position. Water can be poured into the bidet by means of a kettle or by attaching a rubber hose to a faucet in the washstand. Preferably the bidet is provided with two inlet tubes 25, 26, to which flexible tubular members 21, 28, leading to sources of hot and cold water supplies respectively may be permanently or detachably connected.

Such flexible connections have the advantage of not interfering with the movement of the bidet from one of its extreme positions to the other, while providing a connection which is absolutely free from leaks.

In the arrangement described where the bidet has been mounted in place of the usual seat, it is necessary to make provisions for the normal use of the toilet as such.

It is, of course, possible to just raise the bidet to the dotted position shown in Fig. 1, and use the bowl without any seat, preferably equipping its edge with a covering of rubber, or other suitable material, as shown at 29 in Fig. 5. Preferably a seat 36 is provided, pivotally suspended at 3! at the side of the toilet bowl from a supporting rod 32 frontwardly extending from the apron 33 downwardly extending from a cross plate 34, placed on top of the rear extension ll of the toilet bowl. Said plate is provided with openings such as 35, 36, for the passage of the hinge-bolts l2, l3, which can thus secure the plate in position, as shown in Fig. 5. The seat, which in Figs. 1, 2, 3 is shown hanging down at the side of the toilet bowl, can be tilted in a counterclockwise direction with respect to Fig. 2 to normal position on top of the bowl, as will be understood.

Since cover or lid 23 can be secured in position against the bidet by means of catch spring 24, or in ans other suitable manner, the two parts can be raised and lowered as a unit and together form a kind of a box or receptacle within which can be stored various articles for personal use, such as a sponge, antiseptic tablets, etc.

In Figs. 6, 7, I illustrate a similar arrangement in which, however, the bracket comprising plate 34 and apron 33, together with its forwardly extending rod 32, is used as a means for suspending the bidet 31, which is shown hanging down at one side of the toilet bowl l6.

This type of arrangement has the advantage of leaving undisturbed the mounting of seat 38 and its cover 39, with which the toilet is already provided, so that the special seat provided with side hinges, shown in Figs. 1, 2, 3, will not be required.

In Fig. 8 I illustrate another arrangement in which the hinge bolts 40, 4|, upwardly extending from the top 42 of the rear extension 43 of bowl 44, are used for supporting a transversal bar 45, having its ends frontwardly extending at an angle to its transversal central portion, as shown at 46, 41. Said two end extensions serve as pivotal supports for half seats 48, 49, respectively, while the central transversal portion of bar 45 is used as a pivotal support for the bidet 55, which can be operated as explained in connection with the arrangement of Figs. 1, 2, 3.

When it is necessary to lower the bidet from the position shown to its operative position on top of the bowl, the two half seats can be raised to the position shown in dotted lines at 48', 49, where it is seen that the two said half seats are spread apart so as to leave a clear space for the tilting movement of the bidet. This is, of course, due to the fact that the pivotal supports constituted by end extensions 46, 41, of bar 45, are directed at a suitable angle with respect to the axis of central portion 45.

Still another arrangement is shown in Fig. 9 where the bowl 5| is shown provided at the rear with a bracket having lateral extensions 52, 53, each of which is provided with a pivotal support 54, 55, frontwardly extending therefrom alongside the top of the bowl. Each of said pivotal supports is used for hingedly attaching thereto a half seat 56, 51, movable from the position shown in full lines to the position shown in dotted lines at 56, 51', where each half seat hangs down at one side of the bowl. The bidet 58 is pivotally mounted by means of binge members 59, 60, onto the hinge bolts at the rear, as explained in connection with the arrangement of Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 8.

From the foregoing it is seen that I provide a serviceable bidet attachment for toilets, which can be used in the ordinary manner without any difficulty. Bidet attachments which have heretofore been proposed, where the toilet seat is used as a support for the bidet proper have proved entirely unsuited for use in practice because the top of the pan was made to fit the size of the opening provided in the toilet seat. In order to be usable, a bidet must be wide enough to permit free passage of the hands under the body of the user, while the user is sitting on the bidet, without any discomfort.

In my arrangement the bidet is at least as wide as the toilet bowl and preferably wider. If preferred, a bidet constructed in accordance with my invention can also be applied on top of the ordinary seat, as shown in Fig. 10, where 6| designates the toilet seat, hinged at 62 in the ordinary manner, and 63 designates the bidet also hinged coaxially with the seat at 52. The bidet has a central concave portion 64 extending within the opening of the seat, but its peripheral portion extends over, and if desired, beyond the seat, while its front portion 65 also extends frontwardly of the seat. As in the arrangement of Figs. 1 to 5, the bidet is preferably provided with a cover or lid, 65, and together with said cover is caused to take the place of the cover with which the toilet seat is usually provided.

It is, of course, within the scope of my invention to make my improved bidet in detachable form, to be placed either on top of the bowl or of the seat only when needed, and to be entirely removed when not in use.

The constructional details of my invention can further vary from those shown without departure from the inventive idea. The drawings should, therefore, be understood as being intended for illustrative purposes only and not in a limiting sense. I accordingly reserve the right to carry my invention into practice in all those ways and. manners which may enter, fairly, into the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A bidet adapted to be placed on top of a. toilet comprising a bowl, said bidet having a useful pan portion peripherally extending at least to the outer edge of the rim of said bowl, and frontwardly extending beyond said bowl.

2. The combination, with a toilet bowl having a rear extension and. a hinge support upwardly extending from said extension, of a pivotal support extending from said hinge support alongside of said bowl, a bidet having a useful pan portion adapted to extend at least to the outer edge of the rim of said bowl, and a seat for said bowl, one of said two last mentioned elements being hinged upon said hinge support and the other being suspended from and tiltable about said pivotal support.

3. The combination, with a toilet bowl having a rear extension and a hinge support upwardly extending from said extension, of a bidet hinged upon said support, said bidet having a useful pan portion peripherally extending at least to the outer edge of the rim of said bowl, and frontwardly extending beyond said bowl.

4. A bidet adapted to be placed on top of a toilet comprising a bowl, said bidet having a useful pan portion extending at least to the outer edge of the rim of said bowl, a cover for said bidet, and means for hingedly connecting said bidet and cover onto said bowl.

5. A bidet adapted to be placed on top of a toilet comprising a bowl, said bidet having a useful pan portion extending at least to the outer edge of the rim of said bowl, a cover for said bidet, means for detachably locking said cover onto said bidet so as to form a closed receptacle therewith, and means for hingedly connecting said bidet and cover onto said bowl.

6. A bidet adapted to be placed on top of a toilet comprising a bowl, said bidet having a useful pan portion peripherally extending at least to the outer edge of the rim of said bowl, and frontwardly extending beyond said bowl, and means for hingedly attaching said bidet onto said bowl.

7. A bidet adapted to be placed on top of a toilet comprising a bowl, said bidet having a useful pan portion peripherally extending at least to the outer edge of the rim of said bowl, and frontwardly extending beyond said bowl, means for hingedly attaching said bidet onto said bowl, and flexible tubular means for connecting said bidet to a source of water supply.

8. The combination of a toilet comprising a bowl and a seat therefor, a bidet adapted to be placed on top of one of said elements, said bidet having a useful pan portion peripherally extending at least to the outer edge of the rim of said bowl, means for hingedly connecting said seat onto said bowl, a cover for said bidet, and means for hingedly connecting said bidet and cover onto said bowl.

9. The combination of a toilet having a rear extension, a hinge support upwardly extending from said extension, a seat for said bowl, a bidet having a useful pan portion peripherally extending at least 'to the outer edge of the rim of said bowl, and. a cover for said bidet, said seat, bidet and cover being hingedly mounted upon said support, and being tiltable with respect thereto independently of one another.

10. The combination of a toilet comprising a bowl and a seat therefor, a bidet adapted to be placed on top of one of said two elements, said bidet having a useful pan portion peripherally extending at least to the outer edge of the rim of said bowl, and frontwardly extending beyond said bowl, means for hingedly connecting said seat onto said bowl, and means for hingedly connecting said bidet onto said bowl.

11. The combination of a toilet comprising a bowl and a seat therefor, a bidet adapted to be placed on top of one of said two elements, said bidet having a useful pan portion peripherally extending at least to the outer edge of the rim of said bowl, means for hingedly connecting said seat onto said bowl, means for hingedly connecting said bidet onto said: bowl, and flexible tubular means for connecting said bidet to a source of water supply.

12. The combination of a toilet having a rear extension, a hinge support upwardly extending from said extension, a seat for said bowl, a bidet having a useful pan portion peripherally extending at least to the outer edge of the rim of said bowl, said seat and bidet being both hingedly mounted upon said support, said bidet being adapted to rest upon said seat, or to be raised therefrom, and flexible tubular means for connecting said bidet to a source of water supply.

13. A bidet adapted to be placed on top of a toilet comprising a bowl, said bidet having a useful pan portion frontwardly extending beyond said bowl.

14. A bidet adapted to be placed on top of a toilet comprising a bowl, said bidet having a useful pan portion frontwardly extending beyond said bowl, and means for hingedly attaching said bidet onto, said bowl.

IPPOLITO SALVONI. 

